All Forum Posts by: Christopher Giannino

I 100% echo exactly what @Alexander Felice said.  I think you should work on fixing credit but learn and network as much as possible in the meantime.  

If you're looking to do a balance transfer, I would look into Chase Slate. I got it back in the Novemberish timeframe and they have 0% balance transfer fees for the first 60 days with a 0% APR for 15 months. It could be useful if you're trying to float money for a small rehab or something. Only thing is if you're going BRRRR I would not recommend doing a balance transfer because it will impact your DTI ratio which will in return affect your credit score.

@Brandon Turner

I think it depends on what stage of investing you are at and what your future goals are...

I've read that people use the cash flow all the ways mentioned in your original post.  Also, some use it to live off of.  Some use it to build up more reserves when first starting off.  Some use it to pay for some debt they currently have (paying down student loans.)  So I think it really just all depends!

@Nicholas Baughman 

I agree with the previous post that having an accredited investor invest on your behalf isn't the best idea and will definitely break a rule or two lol

I know for a fact there are REITs in other brokerages that don't require you to be accredited in order to invest.  Check those out as a substitute.  Best of luck! 

But if you're buying real estate are you actually paying for a realtor?  Usually, at least in my market,  the seller is technically paying the buyers agent.  Maybe I'm not understanding something here.

@Account Closed

I'm not trying to be rude here but what advantage does owning a cash flow negative property hold?  I could *potentially* understand holding onto a property that breaks even after ALL expenses (P&I, Repairs, Cap Ex, Management, etc) if there's a good possibility of appreciation due to some sort of gentrification in the neighborhood but remember appreciation is never guaranteed so it's more of a gamble. 

I'm located in Central Jersey (about an hour South of NYC) so things definitely make more sense near me.  I have heard that there's been a lot of efforts of revitalizing some of the North Jersey cities such as Newark, Jersey City, Harrison, etc though so that could be worth looking into but I just don't know personally.  This is all speculation but I would think that there would be more opportunities for cash flow in New Jersey then NYC though.  

@Account Closed

I agree that yes, if you did as you explained above I'm sure some agent would take you up on that offer but is that really someone you would want to work with?  It's probably someone less experienced who doesn't understand the full process.  

That $6,000 to 9,000 savings could potentially cost you more in the long run with someone who's inexperience.  Almost everyone and there mother is an agent but that doesn't mean that they are a good agent that provides their commission in value and worth.

So you say your goal is to build a portfolio of buy and hold rental properties. Be honest with yourself here, will your current apartment be cash flow positive and give you a CoC return in which you are okay with? If the answer is no, then option #2 is probably out of the question. If yes, then maybe consider in conjunction with another option.

You also say that your payment is a cash drain.. I assume that means you feel like it's expensive and you can live cheaper than you currently do.  If yes, then option #3 would make sense.  If you were to buy a small MFH and house hack, you'd be able to reduce your living expenses and that's definitely a win!  It will allow you to ramp up your savings and move to the next investment.

Option #1 could work but if your current payment is a cash drain, how will you save for your next investment? Also, if you go multifamily and don't OO you'll most likely have to put down 25%. I have heard that 25% down on MFH is pretty standard nowadays.

At the end of the day, you have to determine what will be the best for you and your goals. Hopefully you find this somewhat helpful though!

Plus if they are looking to discount their commission (something that's very important to them), how do you think they will handle dealing with the negotiation on your property (something that's very important to you.) 

@Parris Crockett

My biggest fear is losing money and failure. I've overcome it by making sure I run my numbers conservatively, having reserves on hand and chalking up any failures to tuition to the school of hard knocks.  Sometimes you just need to fail in order to understand, learn and grow from it.  With that being said, I don't actively go looking to fail or lose money but it's how I rationalize it if it should happen.